Dont underestimate him. What audacity. Giving advice to one of the Taken. The Limper....

That I wont do. Im not the Limper. He and Raker are two of a kind. In the old times.... The Dominator would have made him one of us.

What was he like? Get him talking, Croaker. From the Dominator it is only one step to the Lady.

Soulcatchers right hand rolled palm upward, opened, slowly made a claw. The gesture rattled me. I imagined that claw ripping at my soul. End of conversation.

Later on I told Elmo, You know, that thing out there didnt have to be real. Anything would have done the job if the mob couldnt get to it.

Soulcatcher said, Wrong. Raker had to know it was real.

Next morning we heard from the Captain. News, mostly.

A few Rebel partisans were surrendering their weapons in response to an amnesty offer. Some mainforcers who had come south with Raker were pulling out. The confusion had reached the Circle. Rakers failure in Roses worried them.

Whys that? I asked. Nothing has really happened.

Soulcatcher replied, Its happening on the other side, In peoples minds. Was there a hint of smugness there? Raker, and by extension the Circle, looks impotent. He should have yielded the Salient to another commander.

If I was a bigtime general, I probably wouldnt admit to a screwup either, I said.

Croaker, Elmo gasped, amazed. I do not speak my mind, usually.

Its true, Elmo. Can you picture any general-ours or theirs-asking somebody to take over for him?

That black morion faced me. Their faith is dying. An army without faith in itself is beaten more surely than an army defeated in battle, When Soulcatcher gets on a subject nothing deflects him.

I had a funny feeling he might be the type to yield command to someone better able to exercise it.

We tighten the screws now. All of you. Tell it in the taverns. Whisper it in the streets. Burn him. Drive him. Push him so hard he doesnt have time to think. I want him so desperate he tries something stupid.

I thought Soulcatcher had the right idea. This fragment of the Ladys war would not be won on any battlefield. Spring was at hand, yet fighting had not yet begun. The eyes of the Salient were locked on the free city, awaiting the outcome of this duel between Raker and the Ladys champion.

Soulcatcher observed, Its no longer necessary to kill Raker. His credibility is dead. Now were destroying the confidence of his movement. He resumed his vigil at the window.

Elmo said, Captain says the Circle ordered Raker out. He wouldnt go.

He revolted against his own revolution?

He wants to beat this trap.

Another facet of human nature working for our side. Overweening pride.

Get some cards out. Goblin and One-Eye have been robbing widows and orphans again. Time to clean them out.